Tuesday, May 25, 2004
A Recipe for Disaster (1)
I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis (OA) about 14 years ago while in my mid-thirties. The first surgeon I saw said that nothing could be done and that I should just take pain killers. The second surgeon acknowledged the situation and saw me for twice, at one-year intervals. He had the bedside manner of a python. The third surgeon I saw (let's call him "Dr. Oldtown"), after hearing about how wonderful he was from someone I met at the pool, told me that he would prefer to wait as long as possible before operating because I was much too young. He did give me hope though and seemed to be a genuinely caring person. I went to see him once a year and we tracked my slow deterioration.
Five years ago, at my annual "check-up", the doctor said he would operate whenever I gave the word. At the time, my youngest child was only three and my husband was worried that surgery would be too much to handle with two young children (my other son was six) so I did nothing. The following year, we moved to another city.
One of the first things I did after settling in to our new home was e-mail my beloved doctor and ask him for a referral now that we had moved. He replied with the name of his mentor. IMPORTANT LESSON THAT I LEARNED THE HARD WAY: Never follow a doctor's recommendation when it comes to finding the right doctor for you. Ask real people, people that he/she has operated on. People who've been there and done that.
While I had searched for several years in my old hometown before settling on a surgeon whom I felt was the right one for me, what with the stress of the move I put all my trust in "Dr. Oldtown". Why look any further when someone I respected--and more importantly--trusted had recommended his own teacher to me? Then, at my children's new school, I met a parent who was also a staff surgeon at the hospital where "Dr. Greatmanhimself" worked. In fact, he was Dr. Parent's boss! Well, Dr. Parent just couldn't stop waxing poetic over Dr. Greatmanhimself. Even the nurse I spoke to in the operating theatre just before I fell asleep said that she would choose Dr. Greatmanhimself if she or any of her family had to undergo surgery.
I had waited 2 1/2 years to be operated on by this doctor. In retrospect, I realize that I could have had my operation a lot earlier had I gone with someone "good" but not "godlike".
But I shall dispense with blaming the victim (myself) and sign off for now.
Five years ago, at my annual "check-up", the doctor said he would operate whenever I gave the word. At the time, my youngest child was only three and my husband was worried that surgery would be too much to handle with two young children (my other son was six) so I did nothing. The following year, we moved to another city.
One of the first things I did after settling in to our new home was e-mail my beloved doctor and ask him for a referral now that we had moved. He replied with the name of his mentor. IMPORTANT LESSON THAT I LEARNED THE HARD WAY: Never follow a doctor's recommendation when it comes to finding the right doctor for you. Ask real people, people that he/she has operated on. People who've been there and done that.
While I had searched for several years in my old hometown before settling on a surgeon whom I felt was the right one for me, what with the stress of the move I put all my trust in "Dr. Oldtown". Why look any further when someone I respected--and more importantly--trusted had recommended his own teacher to me? Then, at my children's new school, I met a parent who was also a staff surgeon at the hospital where "Dr. Greatmanhimself" worked. In fact, he was Dr. Parent's boss! Well, Dr. Parent just couldn't stop waxing poetic over Dr. Greatmanhimself. Even the nurse I spoke to in the operating theatre just before I fell asleep said that she would choose Dr. Greatmanhimself if she or any of her family had to undergo surgery.
I had waited 2 1/2 years to be operated on by this doctor. In retrospect, I realize that I could have had my operation a lot earlier had I gone with someone "good" but not "godlike".
But I shall dispense with blaming the victim (myself) and sign off for now.
